Part 10 – Lessons of the Past and Future

The expedition held a funeral for their fallen comrades. The holotags of Vargas and McGraw were wrapped around candles, each one lit. Morrill spoke of the two, his voice cracking slightly. Everyone had been sullen. When Vargas was mentioned, Lucy put her hand to her eyes, her jaw twitching slightly. When McGraw was spoken of, Olin hung her head, her whole body lightly shaking with silent sobs. Lucy had comforted her. The group stayed there silently until both candles had burned down, then parted, Morrill putting the holotags into a small lockbox for safekeeping.

After everything was taken care of, and the expedition had rented several rooms in a motel, Donnovan had taken to wandering the streets of New Jerusalem to get his mind off of the funeral, and his two dead companions. His walk took him across many areas of the large town, through the Jewish quarter, the Muslim quarter, and the Christian quarter. As he walked, questions began to form in his head. Seeing a guard sitting back, smoking a cigarette, he walked over to the man.

"Hello." Donnovan said.

"How are you?" The man smiled. He had a thick, Hebrew accent.

"Could I bother you about how this place works?" Donnovan asked.

"I don't mind, that's what we're here for!" The guard motioned to the empty spot on the bench he was sitting on. Donnovan took it. "What did you want to know?"

"I see Jews, Muslims, Christians, everyone here, living in… well, harmony, I guess. They aren't overly friendly with each other, but they smile and nod as they pass one another."

"Is that a bad thing?" The guard asked, confused.

"No, no." Donnovan shook his head. "It's just… You can't say the history between all three of those major religions has been exactly peaceful. Hell, add all of the geo-political shit over Palestine that was happening in the pre-War years, and it's rather surprising."

"I'm impressed." The guard nodded appreciatively. "You know your history." He took a deep drag on his cigarette. "How this happened is rather simple. Horrible, but simple. Yes, you are right. In the pre-war years, we were constantly killing each other, drawing political and battle lines, and so on. However, when the world was getting ready for nuclear war, it was a wake-up call. Everyone, Christians, Muslims, and Jews, new that Jerusalem would be one of the first to be targeted by an overzealous Iran. Iran, in turn, would most likely be hit by Israel. There was an exodus from the city. Many rich, prominent families belonging to the religions left, and the survivors founded this town. The travel here is a whole separate tale, however. Sad to think that a war that wiped out almost all of our people, both Jews and Arabs, was the thing that brought us together."

Donnovan leaned back to take all of this in. Centuries of chaos, only to be solved by almost everything in the world being destroyed. To start over. That was their solution.

"Incredible."

"Incredible and horrible, yes. We realize now, that we don't have to love each other. We simply have to let each other live. We realized this far later than we should have, after far too many innocent lives were lost on all sides after centuries of war."

"But this new settlement... Isn't it very close to where the bombs fell? I mean, Hellfire Crater…"

"There used to be a privately-owned vault under us, paid for by those families I mentioned. We were close to a direct hit, but it fell into the canyon. The only real danger was the fallout, but again, because of that canyon, the area around the vault entrance was clear in only fifteen years. After that, the families came out and began to rebuild. The three religions coming together to rebuild a connection to their homeland. Strange, isn't it? The vault now is a storage facility for the merchants and for travelers passing through."

"That is incredible." Donnovan repeated. "Destruction caused the rift to heal. Just amazing."

"Indeed."

"So you have all sorts of religions here?"

"Yes. At first, the founders only built the city for the three major religions. Traders of all religions came through, and at first, they were not allowed to worship. The founders realized, however, that this would lead right back to their original problems of the pre-War years, and have allowed every religion in. We have all sorts of temples here. So long as you do not harm others through your religious practices, you are allowed to worship as you want. I believe the most recent addition is a small Ba'hai temple."

"The Ba'hai survived, huh?" Donnovan stated thoughtfully. "What's the crime like here?"

"Not too horrible." The guard said. "We have some minor petty thefts here and there, once in a while a murder, but the perpetrators are usually caught. And it has never yet been over religious differences. We sometimes have people disappear, but that's because a lot of traders forget to sign out when they leave in the morning."

"Yeah, I remember the doc getting us to sign a paper when we arrived." Donnovan nodded. "Do-" He stopped short. A figure in very familiar-looking robes, these ones crimson-colored, was walking past them, its face covered by a hood. The figure coughed, then paused briefly, noticing Donnovan's icy stare, before walking on down the street.

"Tell me…" Donnovan started again. "What religion would that be?"

"I believe that is a member of the Transitional Twilight Hand. Strange group of people, I must admit, but nevertheless welcome to worship."

"Know anything about them?"

"Not really. They keep to themselves. Don't usually allow outsiders in."

"Alright." Donnovan stood up, watching the figure walk down the cobble-stone street towards the market. "Thank you for your time, and for the history lesson. If I have any more questions, can I find you?"

"Yes, my name is Shorik David. Just ask for me at the guard station, I'll let them know you are looking for me. What is your name?"

"Donnovan," He answered, glancing back at the guard and shaking his hand. "Donnovan Edan. I'll find you again, man. Thanks." With that, he turned and quickly followed the robed figure's footsteps while Shorik looked on in curiosity.

Donnovan caught up to the figure, which had stopped at a market stall to buy a large pig. Donnovan watched as the butcher raised his cleaver, but the figure stopped him.

"No, thank you." A male voice floated out from under the hood. "I would like it as is. For artistic reasons when we serve it." The butcher raised an eyebrow and shrugged, but nevertheless handed the pig over. The hooded man paid him, then slung the pig over his back, and continued on his way. Donnovan hung back for several seconds before he followed the man again.

Eventually, after several turns, Donnovan found himself following the man to a stone-walled building, similar to the size of the Church of the Atom back in Megaton. However, large plate-glass windows could be seen, with strange mosaics constructed into them. One depicted an old man bent over a black alter, his hands bloody, while the clouds parted above his head to reveal a deep turquoise sky. Another showed a man in ceremonial robes and with a dried, cracked face, holding a black book in one hand, and pointing to a gathered, seated crowd with the other. As Donnovan walked, he noticed two armed men standing outside of the gates of the church. The figure he had been following went through. Donnovan walked on, as if he had no intention of walking into the church. He noticed the guards tense up as he passed, then relax as he went on. It was obvious they wouldn't allow just anyone in. These had to be the same cultists from the mansion, and word had no doubt gotten around by now about the burning of the mansion. From his experience inside the mansions, Donnovan knew the cult included ghouls, so they easily could've had messengers going through the irradiated territory to the south, completely bypassing Hellfire Crater and the rocky passes. His mind firmly set, he made his way back to the inn where the expedition was staying.

Donnovan practically leapt up the stairs, three at a time, until he reached the floor where Glade's room was. He threw the door open and came in. Glade, had been lying on the bed, fully clothed, staring at the ceiling, and turned his head in surprise as Donnovan ran in.

"-the fuck? Knock next time."

"That cult's here." Donnvan announced simply.

"You're shitting me!" Glade sat up immediately, his mouth open.

"I've got a name for them, too. Transitional Twilight Hand."

"How…?"

"A guard told me. I was talking to him about the city."

"So what do we do?" Glade asked.

"Remember what me, you, and Dusk agreed to? We'd wipe out any trace of this cult anywhere we went?"

"Yeah, I do. But now you remember, we're not in the wastes anymore. We're in a city. It has a government, it has laws." Glade cocked an eyebrow.

Donnovan froze. He had completely forgotten about this.

"Shit…" He cursed. "That's right… The guard even told me, so long as no one gets hurt, any religion is welcome."

"Besides, how do you know they don't do other shit. How is every single one the same? Either way, you'd need to have evidence to do anything."

Donnovan's mind raced.

"Evidence, huh?" He thought. He then turned and walked towards the door.

"Shit… Wait, what the hell are you planning now?" Glade called.

Donnovan ignored him and jogged back to his room. He opened the door and walked over to the window which offered a view of the street outside, along with a man selling what he called "falafel" out of a cart. Thankfully, no one else was in the room. He stared out the window, but his mind was focused on something else. He stood still for a good hour, thinking about what he planned to do, before finally laying down on his bed. He would have to wait until nightfall. Now, if only he could find some way to make time go by faster.